


Soul Shades

by StillLearningIt



Category: Tadashi Hamada - Fandom, Yokai - Fandom
Genre: Multi, OU!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-20
Updated: 2015-07-13
Packaged: 2018-03-18 18:28:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3579516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StillLearningIt/pseuds/StillLearningIt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Souls are physical items here, and those brave enough to fight in this world will be able to unlock their many secrets. Following the lives of several friends, life threating danger and heart wrenching emotion will guide you, as the reader, through the astounding and constantly evolving Soul Shades universe!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Crash Course (Prologue)

**Author's Note:**

> Hello curious reader! If you are here, that means you've been kind enough to sample my first work EVER XD! I was recently invited to post here so I'm not in the swing of things just yet; but hey, I'm a fast learner. I'm working very closely with some personal friends on this series-to-be so I hope you all spread the news! However, i'll most likely go back and make a few minor additions and refinements here & there, so be sure to go back and re-read the prologue before the first real chapter debuets ^^'. Also, if you have any questions that require answers that are more specific than the story currently contains; please feel free to post questions in the comments : )!
> 
>  
> 
> Please enjoy my introduction to the new "Soul Shades" series!

              1.The Physical Soul): A carrier’s soul can be described as a tough shard of sentient glass-like material that serves as a vessel for his/her consciousness. In short, you are INSIDE of your physical soul. After exactly twelve years of existence, a being’s body will have developed a socially mature physical embodiment (a.k.a: soul). At this stage, a carrier can remove their soul through his/her access panel only, via mental concentration. In most cases the panel is located just below the collarbone. The appearance of a soul varies tremendously. Though the texture is universally similar, the solid glowing color is individual to a member of each and every generation -along with a unique, three-dimensional, personalized shape-. Though females are partial to intricate breeds of flowers, and males to three-dimensional geometric items, the results are never quite predictable. Examples include; a female with a violet heart that has sprouted wings, or a male with a chartreuse double-helix.

               2. Properties of the Soul): Although the soul’s material is tough, it is not unbreakable. The average soul can withstand falls from up to three stories without shattering; however, massive or accumulated damage will result in cracking of the soul, causing mental instability. Healing a soul that has been cracked or damaged can only be done by the carrier through rest, positive reinforcement, and in some cases; extreme concentration of one’s energy. The condition of a carrier’s soul should be monitored routinely, and is to be taken with the utmost seriousness. Souls may be intentionally broken by a carrier if they so choose. By focusing on a specific portion of one’s soul, s/he can remove it in an attempt to swap portions equal in size with another carrier of any gender. In any relationship between carriers, both parties involved must swap half of their soul to solidify any bond if it is to be deemed true. In the event a relationship is a success, the swapped halves will morph into a new soul for both carriers that combines both of their emotions, experiences, and marginalizes their shades by the median; however, the original shape of the carrier will still exist. Inversely, in the event a relationship is not meant to be, the halves will never bond and must be returned to the original owners. Only if two souls are compatible will a relationship be a success.

               3. Effects of the Soul): The carrier’s emotions have a direct impact on his/her soul. Prolonged exposure to negative emotions, such as sadness or anger, will cause a carrier’s soul to decrease in size as well as become significantly more fragile. This also means that extensive exposure to positive emotion, such as joy or love, will cause one’s soul to become highly durable, as well as heal any damage at a faster rate.

             4. Defensive Capabilities of the Soul): Each carrier has a basic ability provided by a soul that falls into one of five categories: -Speed: High endurance paired with a top recorded speed of 180 m/s. -Acrobatics: Extremely agile and erratic in battle. -Intelligence: Fast paced thought process with a learning ability that is unparalleled to this day. -Stealth: Ranges from full-on organic camouflage to naturally chemical means of hiding. -Defense: Either brute strength for the deflection of attacks or mentally generated force fields that absorb/reflect attacks. Souls will also defend themselves by providing the carrier with a replenishable weapon that can be summoned as long as s/he is in good health. The weapons today are combinations of the first basic weapons to be wielded by the carriers that established our society, now referred to as component weapons. After centuries of continued life, current weapon designs contain a maximum of four component weapons; and even then there are multiple possibilities that can be derived by the same four component weapons, making any and all weapons versatile in several fashions dependent on the the carrier. 

The following is a list of all known component weapons: 

-Chain Mace -Whip 

-Crossbow -Spear 

-Double-Edged Blade -Fighting Staff 

-Single-Edged Blade -Concussion Smoke Bombs 

-Scythe -Round Shield 

-Gauntlets -Battle Hammer 

-Nun-Chucks -Twin Hooks 

\- Grapple 

Surprisingly, souls also have the ability to resonate. One person can synchronize his/her soul’s waves, visible by the glowing color the soul emits, to another’s. The colors of both souls will change as they near the exact midpoint between the two original hues of the carriers. As the colors match perfectly, the abilities they provide for their carriers, aside from their weapons, compound continuously as they amplify each other in a feedback loop.The harder the duo concentrate the greater the effect. After a limit has been reached or the shared concentration has been interrupted, the pair are now completely in-sync. With their thoughts simultaneous and precise, goals set, and weapons drawn, the two become a dangerous force of nature that test whatever stands in their path. The longer the charge, the longer two souls can remain synchronized until the effects wear off, usually in a final blunt attack. This skill is extremely helpful to possess as it does not require the removal of a soul from a carrier’s body to be executed; but, this ability is not for the faint of heart. It takes intense practice with a willing partner to even begin to become useful in any situation --though on the contrary, those who do achieve this ability cannot only work to resonate with more power, but do so with more than one person--. Even so, those who are in an even soul sharing relationship can achieve full resonance in seconds if practiced.

                  5. Value of the Soul): Though it is HIGHLY unadvised, carriers can trade portions of their souls for a predetermined offer. This process is extremely risky as it degrades the abilities of the carrier directly proportionate to the size of the piece lost from the soul. A soul is much more valuable than most give it credit for, and that mindset is what leads to the very real dangers of being a carrier.

                  6. The Dangers of the Soul): Although trading small portions of one’s soul with those close to them is generally a good thing, many carriers forget themselves in other people. No more than half of a carrier’s soul can be willingly traded before the event of a relationship, in which all parts of both partners’ souls meld into a single mass before a half swap can be attempted -this process takes roughly two to three days; during which, the carrier experiencing the mixing of souls in his/her body goes through a period of serious mental distress- Exposing one’s soul may seem common, and it is; but, it also leaves the carrier doing so unbelievably vulnerable. A soul can be damaged or stolen with extreme ease when it is outside of it’s rightful access port in the carrier’s body. Which leads to the biggest danger imaginable: The soul-less. Also known as the hollow, these are everyday carriers; people who have lost their humanity and all mental control by going without a soul for much too long. In the event that someone loses their soul, a countdown begins. There is a time period of exactly twenty-five days after more than twenty-four hours of disconnection between the carrier and their soul where the empty person begins to deteriorate and something inhuman takes their place. Day by day, everyday actions and simple abilities disintegrate. The ability to summon one’s soul weapon is the first to go. Then the added abilities of the soul diminish, followed by aggressive mood swings and disconnection from any and all social interaction. By the last five days, the person has begun to experience severe blackouts, during which they will be temporarily overrun by all of the negative energy that takes the place of the vacant soul. This energy creates a being that has the ability to completely suppress the host by confining him/her to the subconscious mind while the dark parasite manifests the host’s original abilities along with a dark, chaotic version of the host’s soul weapon only to compound the power by gaining the ability to resonate with other soul-less carriers. This allows the hollow to preserve the host in his/her infected state so that it never has to worry about the aging process, dooming the host to an eternity of submission and despair. The highjacker also puts the host’s many negative emotions to use, fueling it’s rage.These beings are unsurprisingly filled with greed; greed for the souls that they can touch but never have, which prompts them to steal and consume any soul they can find. The hollow, now in total control, searches for a new victim to transform into a chaotic comrade. It targets those that the host is closest to in order to keep a constant supply of fear, anger, and any other emotion from it’s captive who is all but forced to watch as their loved ones are stalked mercilessly until the inevitable; deprived of any means of escape. However, there are two possible ways to retrieve a host carrier's conscience from a hollow. The first is death by an experienced carrier’s weapon. A direct blow from a talented carrier’s soul weapon, without interference of any kind by the hollow, will free the host’s mind --destroying the creature--. Sadly, this also kills the host. Though carrier weapons don’t have the ability to seriously harm other humans directly, the sudden regain of control causes a sensory overload. Combine that with the sudden force of a full on attack from a carrier of high caliber, would send anyone undefended flying, plus the absence of a soul for so long, and the chances of survival all but vanish. An alternative to this task is the placement of a soul in the access port of the host’s body. Though this is next to impossible, as the soul-less rarely stay still long enough to do so; let alone sleep, it has been achieved before. It is no easy feat, but the access port on a hollow’s host is left open since the parasite requires it’s host to be constantly aware of his/her defeat. A simple closed access port can give even the most hopeless empty carriers the strength to fight back, be it futile or not. A successful replacement of a soul will remove the creature’s dominance over the victim, bringing them back to reality; however, the effects of the elongated mental torture will NEVER leave the host’s thoughts. If at any point the surviving victim’s new makeshift soul dissipates to an alarmingly small size within the assigned recuperation time, due to excessive negative emotions, which isn’t hard for the hollow as it’s essential being resides somewhere in the old host’s subconscious, the creature can overtake the host again; just long enough to destroy the soul and repeat the gruesome process once again. To ensure the nation’s safety, our government takes numerous precautions in guaranteeing our safety as those exhibiting the seventh day signs of becoming soul-less and beyond are immediately removed from the country to ensure peace and prosperity on all of us that thrive here. After-all, they do have at least seven days to regain a soul.

 

…

 

“Now that we know the core principles of our society and the axis that our precious world revolves around, we are ready to become a part of society and protect WHO and WHAT we love! I bid you farewell peers, and good luck all the same! For I do not see any of us as mere students.. no…. but as the elite graduates of the San Fransokyo Carrier Combat University!!!!” she screamed into the mic, only to be rewarded with the echo from the empty auditorium.

 The girl grew a pleased grin as she set her hands or her thin hips, “You GOT this Rylee!” She proudly strutted from behind the tall podium and across the dimly lit stage to the exit doors with her head held high. “Tomorrow’s the big day!” she exclaimed in her head with a grin plastered to her lips.


	2. Character Index (FINALLY XD!!!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Descriptions of all major characters in the series (minus one to debut in the next chapter to come ;P)!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please forgive me for the.. uhmmmmm....... *belated* post of the index ^^'.... It wasn't on purpose of course, but all excuses aside, it's FINALLY finished!! Now enough babbling on my part! (even though it was only one sentence) Please enjoy these detailed descriptions of the characters to take part in this series to be!

Ruth: Baby Pink / Carnation (complementary shades: apple red & pearl white)  
-Gender: Female  
-Skill set: Acrobatics  
-Weapon components: whip + double-edged blade + crossbow  
-Weapon Design:  
Only Form- A simple double edged blade that is quite narrow, very light, and tinted with her signature baby pink. The weapon’s hilt is wide for the blade’s size; but for good reason. The blade can be quickly detached from the handle in a series of multiple segments that are all connected by a an internal elastic whipcord that is stored inside the hilt with a simple press of the spherical trigger at the bottom of the hilt. The total length in this way is an astounding forty feet at the height of a swing, but it is not too useful at close range. Alternatively, by twisting the lower half of the blade’s grip, the weapon can quickly snap into a small crossbow. The front edges of the bow itself are sharpened for close range combat.  
-Age: 19 years  
-Appearance: 5’8” / long, curly, dirty blonde hair / light skinned Caucasian / misty blue-green eyes / softly rounded facial features / hair is usually kept down (aside from battle situations, where it is kept in a low ponytail)  
-Armor Design: A pair of comfortably tight, leather-like bottoms that lead into a pair of shin high, flared, and padded fighting boots is her bottom armor half. The top is a simple looking long-sleeve white blouse with protective lining and reinforced metal plating underneath to reduce damage from blade based attacks. Jutting from the back her waistline is a four pronged train that drapes down to the back of her calfs. The base of the cloth is shaded pink, while each of the four dangling peaks are pearl white; however, the entire train is embroidered with a gold lining not present anywhere else on her armor.

 

Donovan: Cyan / Double Helix (complementary shades: light gray & black)  
-Gender: Male  
-Skill set: Defense [Physical Projections (spherical in shape)]  
-Weapon components: whip + smoke concussion bombs + battle hammer  
-Weapon Design:  
Only Form- (In short) A heavy, long staffed battle hammer. The hammer’s staff itself is wide & black with large cyan and gray square pixels as detailing, and ends in a short black octagonal prism topped with a cyan half sphere. The weapon’s head is almost identical to that of Thor’s mjolnir, only much larger. Completely shaded gray, the mallet head also has norse inscriptions along each of its’ thinner faces. A wide and short cylinder, which is bottomed off by a wide cone that ends in another smaller cylinder, makes up the hollow chamber just under the mallet head. The chamber is black in color with cyan lining along each edge. The walls of the upper cylinder portion of the chamber are lined with large half spheres. Externally, these spheres are just for show, but internally they hold concussion smoke bombs to be used for combat. By pressing the upper grip’s trigger, the the hammer’s head will unlock from the base and release a single bomb from its’ holder. The head then rotates 90 degrees, and the resulting force of the head’s locking device against the released bomb causes it to explode immediately, forcing the head off of the chamber like a cannon. The two segments stay connected by an extremely durable and elastic whip, held in place by an internal lock mechanism. The lower cylinder has a reeling mech that can be activated with another press of the upper trigger. The whip’s total length is just over fifty feet at full tension.  
By pressing the lower grip’s trigger, two things will happen. First, the mallet head will follow the same process as before, only it will rotate 180 degrees and re-lock in the opposite position of the chamber, sending the force of the bomb’s explosion through the hollow of the staff instead of flying off. Second (and simultaneously), the opposite end of the staff will open and unlock the mechanism holding the internal whip hilt in place, forcing it out of the open staff end like a bullet. The launched hilt can be reeled in with another press of the lower trigger as well.  
-Age: 19 years  
-Appearance: 5’11.5” / short, curly black hair / african-american (milk chocolate skin tone) / light brown eyes / gentile features / weight is proportionate to height / average muscle build /  
-Armor Design: Black body cover (resembling an ankle length wetsuit) that is heavily reinforced with a smart fiber that tenses up on impact to protect his body from simple close range and basic fall damage. The surface pads are cyan. The large black combat boots are tough and detailed with cyan highlights, along with the black hooded cloak he dons that is also detailed in large amounts of cyan and grey along the edges. 

 

Rylee: Garnet / shape of; this thing…..[](complementary shades: black & silver)  
-Gender: Female  
-Skill Set: Acrobatics  
-Weapon Components: gauntlets + single edged blade + crossbow  
-Weapon Design:  
Form 1- A lightweight, silver single edged blade that is similar in design to Thorin’s orcrist sword from J. R. R. Tolkien’s; “The Hobbit Trilogy.” The hilt has an opening on the bottom end that can fire small crossbow arrows when activated by a trigger on the upper area of the two handed grip.  
Form 2- A pair of silver gauntlets that are bordered with soft linear black and garnet engravings all along the surface. The pair of damaging gloves are a bit lighter than the standard pair of gauntlets as they aid in the ease of her acrobatic maneuvers. Her right glove is special, because she can internally activate a small crossbow that can emerge from the top of the large wrist guard. Although it lacks in size, it makes-up for that in its’ reliability. The small weapon is extremely sturdy and is always perfectly calibrated, making it a lethal weapon when underestimated.  
-Age: 18 years (youngest in the group by two months)  
-Appearance: 5’8.5” / dark brunette hair / green eyes / light freckling of the cheeks / angular face / fair skinned / slim, toned body / hair is usually worn down freely  
-Armor Design: Wears a short dark red cloak with black and white touches. Beneath the cloak is very light and compact padding that defends well against short ranged blows. The cape and large hood of the cloak are merely meant to add style and pizazz, and when the situation requires it, it allows Rylee to confuse her opponent. The bottoms are also very light; black skin tight fabric with reinforced metal plating beneath. She wears tall, black, steel toed combat boots with this.

 

Logan: Evergreen / ‘Infinite Triangle’ illusion frame (complementary shades: chartreuse & silver)  
-Gender: Male  
-Skill Set: Defense [Physique]  
-Weapon Components: gauntlets + double edged blade + hammer  
-Weapon Design:  
Form 1- A pair of heavy silver gauntlets that are lined with a sharp blade on the outer most edge of either glove from the base to the section just under where the pinky begins. The bulky gloves are only detailed by chartreuse lines that outline the knuckle indentions and the pivoting joint sections.  
Form 2- A very heavy battle hammer with a long five foot staff. The mallet head is wide simple cylinder with a short uncurved hammer claw tapering from the back. The silver mallet head has a bright green half sphere indented on either side that could seperately be a handful. The evergreen staff is detailed with silver lines that wind around its’ width and down its’ length in sharp right angle turns that don’t touch. With the a twist of the only grip at the end of the staff, the section between the mallet head and the staff will extend another two and a half feet to release a thick double edged blade. The extensive weapon is slightly curved on both sides with an evergreen stripe following the blade’s midsection. To resheath the blade, he only has to twist the handle in the reverse direction.  
-Age: 18 years (older than Rylee by two months)  
-Appearance: 5’11” / black lengthy hair / brown eyes / slim toned body / thick & coarse eyebrows & hair / caucasian (pale skin tone) / PUBERTY SMACKDOWN TO THE VOCAL CHORDS (translation: very deep voice) / rounded facial features  
-Armor Design: Resembles that of a U.S. soldier, though the padding is much tougher, with a layer of a solid plastic-like material surrounding much of his body underneath. The base color is a dark brownish grey with chartreuse and silver highlights throughout as detailing. Rather than a helmet, hood, etc, Logan wears a retractable protective guard that covers the bottom half of his face. The piece has a built in communications unit, as well as a visual HUD (a more simplistic version of Iron Man’s Jarvis) that assesses his physical condition during a battle. He wears thick soled evergreen combat boots that hug his pant cuffs closely. He also wears thick gloves in combat.

Cole: Turquoise / Hourglass with a curved bottom on either end (complementary shades: magenta & black)  
-Gender: Female  
-Skill Set: Speed  
-Weapon Components: fighting staff + double edged blade + nun-chucks  
-Weapon Design:  
Form 1- An extremely light, six foot magenta blade staff that is indented with jagged turquoise designs along the staff portion. The absurdly wide double edged blade that tops the staff is very similar to the bulky design of Kratos’ ‘blades of chaos’ in the, “God of War,” series. The foot long blade’s coloring is a pale charcoal, while the same jagged designs on either of the the blade’s faces are bordered in thin turquoise lines.  
Form 2- A pair of identical double edged blades with staffs roughly a foot and a half in length for each ( basically two drastically shortened versions of the original blade staff). However, the blades can be released from their hilts with a press of the individual triggers just above the grip on either weapon, releasing the blades and connecting them to the shortened staffs with a short chain. This form is best used in close range combat for speedy maneuvering and crowd clearing.  
-Age:19  
-Appearance: 5’6.5” / short bleach blonde hair with a turquoise highlight on her left side / tough skinned around the edges / warm complexion / bright blue eyes / lean build  
-Armor Design: Aside from her cloak being hoodless, Cole’s armor mimics Donovan’s armor completely. However, where Donovan’s highlights are gray, Cole’s are a bright magenta.

 

Peyton: Crimson / Tiger Lily (complementary shades: cream & black)  
-Gender: Female  
-Skill Set: Acrobatics  
-Weapon Components: twin hooks + round shield + scythe  
-Weapon Design:  
Form 1- A rounded shield that has two opposite facing twin hook blades parallel to one another. The the shield is roughly two feet in diameter and is comprised of two layers. The back layer is the basis of the shield with a concave shape and forearm grip at the center. The front layer is able to rotate at incredibly fast speeds, making the blades extremely lethal (similar to a buzz-saw) and much easier to throw across more extensive distances. The front layer can be locked in place and is designed with a large triangular pyramid that touches the border of the shield at each tip. The design isn’t raised too far from the base and the low pyramid is divided into three sections from each tip, utilizing each of her three signature colors. The spaces in between the pyramid and inch wide border are adorned with intricate vine patterns that swirl in a controlled chaos within their respective sections.  
Form 2- A large, double bladed scythe that is handled from the center grip, which is covered on either side by a twin hook handle guard. The blades are black and steeply curved, while the staff is a swirling design of crimson and cream. By simply unlocking the grip, she can pull the large weapon into twin scythes with a single handle guard for each.  
-Age: 19  
-Appearance: 5’9” / african-american (similar skin tone to Donovan) / thin bodily frame / stronger appendages than torso / soft features / dark brown hair with lighter streaks throughout (even bob cut hairstyle) / brown eyes  
-Armor Design: The best example for her armor would be the basic outfit ‘Titania’ Erza Scarlet from the anime, “Fairy Tail.” The many reinforced plates that make up her armor extend from her suit’s collar to just above her knees in a mid-length battle skirt. The sleeves end just over her shoulders, only to begin again at her elbows in a pair of hardened combat gloves that are comprised of the same material that her torso covering is. She also wears simple cream boots that extend to her knees with thin crimson soles. The entire set is bulky for an acrobatic carrier, but she has managed surprisingly well to reach her combat potential regardless.

Trinity: Lavender / Simple Bird [midflight pose] (complementary shades: tan & bright sky blue)  
-Gender: Female  
-Skill Set: Defensive [Physical Projections (spherical in shape)]  
-Weapon Components: fighting staff + twin hooks + crossbow  
-Weapon Design:  
Form 1- A seven foot combat staff that begins and ends in opposite blades of a pair of traditional twin hooks. The staff itself closely resembles bamboo in the same tan brown that accents her soul shade. The blades can retract into the staff independently, and the weapon itself can be taken apart into two equal portions with a manual twist.  
Form 2- A very long, two-handed crossbow that is made of the same material as the staff she wields. The upper grip w/ trigger is protected by a single twin hook style bladed handle guard. This form is most effective from long range.  
-Age: 18  
-Appearance: 5’8” / average body type / lean torso / korean ethnicity (lightly tanned) / long, wavy black hair that quickly fades to a chestnut brown four to five inches from the root (always wears a large intricate feather chain) / light brown eyes / warm features / dawns a self designed star tattoo below her right collarbone / always wears her bronze gear bracelets outside of combat situations  
-Armor Design: Trinity’s armor is a two piece set. The bottoms are a pair of light brown, capri-like pants that are heavily padded underneath and end at a low calf height; paired with a, steampunk inspired, heavy belt that sits slightly crooked on her hips (it’s more of a fashion piece than a necessity). She wears heavy duty lavender shoes that resemble high tops, which rise just past the bottom of her ‘pants.’ The top is a short sleeved lavender shirt, of sorts, that ends above the bottoms’ waistline. It’s just as padded as the pants, with details and highlights in the same sky blue that lines the bottoms and makes the basis of color for her belt. As the top reaches the collar area, the fabric turns into a thick, durable material that works as a hooded cowl. The pale lavender covering works well as a shield for most ranged attacks. She also wears a pair of lightly padded tan gloves that go with her combat outfit (again; they’re more of a fashion piece). Overall, her lack of heavy defensive armor makes her much faster than most defensive carriers. 

 

Kass: Electric blue / perfect sphere with 6 tunnels placed randomly throughout that never intersect (complementary shades: black & lemon yellow)  
-Gender: Male  
-Skill set: Speed  
-Weapon Components: Scythe + fighting staff + round shield  
-Weapon Design: (rather than flashing into soul shards and reappearing in a new form, Kass’s weapons reshape themselves from the previous form. Staff to scythe to shield and vise versa.)  
Form 1- A lightweight fighting staff, shaded lemon yellow, that has both a retractable scythe blade and extension option. Originally, the staff is roughly six feet long but can be extended to eight feet with a twist of the grip. The electric blue scythe blade is able to materialize, more than retract, from the end of the staff opposite the grip in both the extended and non-extended positions.  
Form 2- A light, sharp edged round shield that has the ability to extend an eight foot staff-like appendage from its’ back by rotating the inner disc on the back, via the forearm strap, allowing it to be wielded in a fashion similar to a battle hammer.  
-Age: 20 years  
-Appearance: 6’ / dark brunette with “spiked” haircut / silver-blue eyes / very well sculpted face / naturally built body with a wide chest and narrow hips / slightly tanned  
-Armor design: Greatly resembles that of “Halo” armor lacking a helmet (metallic framework around the body). The design is significantly less bulky, as to aid in speed, though he is still weighed down heavily by his armor. Fortunately, it protects him from a much wider range of damages. Its’ coloring is actually a base of black, with his actual soul shade being a more dominant highlight color over the padded areas instead. The entire suit is detailed with his yellow compliment.

 

Ehtarius (Etho): ‘True’ Red / Heart (complementary shades: deep sapphire & silver)  
-Gender: Male  
-Skill Set: Speed  
-Weapon Components: smoke concussion bombs + single edged blade + grapple  
-Weapon Design:  
Only Form- A light single edged blade that is roughly three feet long with a curved tip and dawned with a single segment that follows the midsection of the blade from hilt to end. The backbone of the blade is generally a metal shinai. This is not just for looks however, as the long hollow chamber has the ability to hold individual bombs after they have been released via the trigger located at the very top of the hilt’s extremely wide grip. While a bomb is in the chamber, he can slam the sharpened edge of the blade into an object to force it into the chamber, hence the long segment spanning the blade; igniting the bomb, sending the blade shooting back out of the chamber with the resulting force and delivering a deep and powerful double blow in one swing. By quickly extending and releasing the bottom of the hilt (like a pinball machine launcher) after loading a bomb, the blade will release from the hilt after the bomb is detonated and fire forward on a grapple line that connects the handle and blade internally. The line itself is significantly longer than a whip, around seventy feet at max, but it is also easier to damage with attacks from other weapons. Upon impact, the blade segment will jut out from it’s base into the surface of the contacted object in an attempt to wedge itself in to create a stable grappling line. This grapple can pierce solid granite and stay in place thanks to the large serrations along the back of the blade that raise up immediately after the blade has been fired. The reeling mechanism in the handle is extremely quick and can be activated with another press of the trigger.  
-Age: 20  
-Appearance: 6’1” / short, spiky blond hair / slender build / ‘true’ red eyes / light caucasian skin tone / angular face / fair skinned  
-Armor Design: All details aside (^^)’... His armor mimics Kakashi’s standard wear (“Naruto Shippuuden” for best reference) to a ‘T’; despite the fact that he lacs in a low facial covering and his base colors for the armor are a balance of ‘true’ red and his signature deep sapphire with small silver detailing in his shoes & waistline. 

 

Tadashi: ‘Artificial Cherry’ Red / ‘Natural’ Crystalline Structure (complementary shades: sunset orange & ocean blue)  
-Gender: Male  
-Skill Set: Intelligence  
-Weapon Components: smoke concussion bombs + round shield + chain mace  
-Weapon Design:  
Only Form- A moderately weighted round shield that has a foot long handle connected to a two foot long, bulky chain protruding from its’ back. The thick shield can also release smoke concussion bombs from its center, making him the only carrier that can utilize the bombs on their own. Should he find himself in a tough spot against an opponent, Tadashi can ignite bombs within the shield’s chamber. By doing this he can use the recoil of the explosion to shake off the opponent’s weapon as well as spew the small cloud of smoke into their face through the small vent in the center of the shield. The handle clips into the back of the sheild as a grip while the heavy duty chain locks inside the body of the shield. The front design of this shield is a series of empty red rings elevated from the blue base in random patterns that all revolve around a central filled ring. around the edge of the shield, small orange studs line the shield about an inch apart from one another.

-Age: 20  
-Appearance: (roughly) 6’2” / long, even face / mid-length black hair / dark brown eyes / muscular torso / slender waist  
-Armor Design: Debatably the most casual in appearance, his armor is comprised of distinct upper and lower styles. Closely resembling that of Ike’s armor (featured in “S.S.B. Wii U”), the bottoms are a pair of heavy and slightly baggy pants that lead into a pair of plated shin protecting boots. The steel toed boots end in thicker flat-front half circles that are similar in color to the oceanic blue shin plating. The torso and shoulders are plated in a balanced material that resembles iron in texture and matches the same color and design of the shin guards. He wears padded blue fingerless gloves, regardless of the situation, that send waves of pressure to his hands by tensing and releasing to give him information on the force of attacks that his shield and/or blade take in that he uses to assess his opponents in battle.

Yokai: Navy Blue / ‘Urchin Sphere’ (complementary shades: indigo & black’)  
-Gender: Male  
-Skill Set: Stealth [Gaseous Chemical Hallucinogen]  
-Weapon Components: round shield + single edged blade + paralytic dart launcher  
-Weapon Design:  
Form 1- A straightened single edged blade with a peculiar dip in the back of the blade just after the handle begins. The blade is about two feet long and lined with nearly invisible serrations that cause serious laceration damage. The hilt has a primary and secondary trigger with the former resting inside the latter. The larger secondary trigger snaps the blade back over the top half of the hilt on a small hinge, turning it into a makeshift forearm blade. The smaller primary trigger actually launches his signature serrated darts, which are coated with a toxin that can temporarily paralyze any body part that is unfortunate enough to be cut or impaled by the inch long projectile. A shot to the upper spine, however, will cause instant paralysis to the target that won’t wear off for a few minutes.  
Form 2- A light round shield that is extremely wide and colored with a random assortment of slashes and blotches in all three of his colors that allow him to blend into his dark surroundings easily, whether his opponent has been subjected to his chemical hallucinogen or not. From the back grip, a trigger can be pressed to release a string shot of three darts from the front of the shield, just as Tadashi’s shield can release the internal bombs from the center of its’ expanse.  
-Age: 19  
-Appearance: (roughly) 6’.5” / short, wavy grey hair / harsh facial features / lean build / pale blue eyes  
-Armor Design: A light, navy blue battle suit that best resembles the wetsuits from, “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.” Though the suit is well padded in its’ entirety, the armor is quite malleable as to aid in stealthy maneuvering, which reduces the armor’s defensive capabilities to basic fall damage & hand to hand combat. Anything that exceeds that limit is taken by his own body. He also wears a black hoodless cloak that looks most like a pocket free trench coat. His shoes are best described as light, ankle high portioned ‘boots.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> P.s.: Etharius WILL be in the next chapter as a protagonist; I just thought you all would like his description sooner rather than later.


	3. Resonate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “HEADS UP!!” Donovan blurted out as he came crashing into the solid rock face. Cole dodged the attack effortlessly with a fleeting reverse bound as a huge impact crater sent rock debris flying upward, soon cascading back down like rain… “Ow!” Donovan repeated as his head was pelted with the heavy stones; … make that hail. 
> 
> “You could’ve NOT tried to crush me y’know.” Cole muttered sarcastically as she strolled to the edge of the crater, brushing off her shoulders.
> 
> “Isn’t that the point of sparring?” Donovan asked, rubbing a knot the size of a baseball on his head with an embarrassed grin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Welcome to my first official chapter of the 'Soul Shades' series! The story could not be possible if it weren't for my brilliant co-author and my friends for all of their input and detail XD!! Luv you guys! This took a ton of time to create, and even so, i'm still nervous. I just hope it delivers on my real writing ability and stands out enough to draw some sort of following. Just to fore warn, I am currently completing a character index that will make descriptions of the key characters soooooooo much easier than introducing each one individually within the 1st chapter^3^. That will certainly be posted before the week is out :P! I also have a few notes to post at the end, so make sure to read those for extra details in the near future ^^. Well, without further delay; I would like to open you inquisitive readers to the newborn world of 'Soul Shades'! XD

“Your toast is burning.” Rylee said with a chuckle. Logan broke his cheesy ‘cool guy leaning on a wall’ pose with the grace of a giraffe on rollerskates as he scrambled to remove the slices of darkened bread from the toaster oven on the counter. The black haired teeager was wearing a simple graphic t-shirt and a “Legends of Zelda” sweatshirt, still in his bare feet and pajama bottoms, while his partner in crime donned a grey oversized hoodie and blue jean combo. 

Rylee laughed at his dorky display; but hey, thats why she loved him. The duo had moved into their shared apartment at the beginning of freshman year at the university. The rent was surprisingly low for a place of this calibre, but you wouldn't catch either of them complaining about that. They had their own room, a spare, a full bathroom, a laundry room/utility closet, and a small living room that connected to the small open kitchen. 

The overall design was pretty modern, with tons of straight lines that made the place feel clean, but Rylee took over on the bulk of the decor, setting animalistic sculptures here and there that were followed by much of her own artwork on the walls. She was partial to canines, although Logan had convinced her to mix it up and put up some of her own designs. Everyone who visits is specifically drawn to a character she calls ‘Hello.’ Ever since then, she’s been a lot more open to showcasing her work.

Logan brought the plate of toast, more like charred rubber by Rylee’s standards, over to the table and placed it on the edge, close to his roommate. 

“Bon Appétit!” He sighed in embarrassment as he sat down. Rylee had already eaten half of her plate’s contents by the time Logan sat down to start; which was okay, considering he could arguably eat at the speed of sound. No seriously. He’d done it before. Rylee had given him a sub sandwich on the couch for lunch one day, and when she went to get a juice box from the fridge he had eaten the entire foot long WITHOUT A SOUND before she even sat down. All Logan had to say for himself was ‘It’s delicious!’--but with a mouthful of turkey sub, it sounded more like, ‘Iffss duuh-li-kis!’--.

Anyway. Rylee took a piece of… ‘toast’ from the plate, out of pity and love…… mostly love, and set it on her napkin as Logan began tearing into his meal. Meanwhile, Rylee leaned over to her satchel by the chair. With debris of eggs and bacon flying about from the massacre on the other end of the table, she pulled out a small yellow notepad with a pen and began to go down her checklist for the morning. 

“Did you recite your defense montra today?” she stated with an inquisitive glare. 

“Pleasedon’tkillmeItwasn’tmyfault!” Logan spat out in one breath, along with most of his food. Rylee dodged the flying food without moving more than the occasional head tilt. 

“Not for ME smartass!” she said lightheartedly as she stood up. Logan swallowed his food and chuckled, realizing his joke was a success.  
“Defend for the blind, the loving, and true;” he began, “Defend for those who can’t defend you.” 

He cleared his spot on the table and brought the dishes over to the sink as he continued to speak, “For they are your comrades, through life and through war.” He moved over to Rylee and spun her around, hands around her waist. “Do that-” he murmured as Rylee draped her hands around his neck, still grasping her notebook and pen, “And they shall be with you forever more.” He said gazing into her eyes. The air was still now, as if his soft voice had calmed it the way it had calmed her. They sat there for a moment in the living room like this, holding each other like it was a prom night spotlight dance. The only comforts they had, other than each other, were the faint hums of their souls vibrating excitedly in unison from the close contact and the inviting morning light spilling in from the large window overlooking the campus outside.

“Y’know I can’t help it when you get all poetic on me like that.” Rylee groaned with a laugh as she dropped her head into his chest. 

“I try.” Logan said with a proud smirk, hugging his young love even tighter. 

“But y’know what else?...” Rylee teased, looking up once more.

“What?” Logan asked, already too excited for an answer. Rylee leaned into his ear slowly as she pulled him down to her level, whispering seductively in his ear as she spoke; 

“I don’t think you can take the combat final with pajama pants on.” 

The silence that followed left Logan paralyzed in some form of embarrassment while Rylee backed away with a snide smirk on her face. She grabbed her satchel from it’s spot on the kitchen floor as she heard Logan make a mad dash for the room behind her. As fumbling and loud bangs rang from the back, Rylee resumed her checklist:  
-High protein breakfast/ CHECK  
-Logan’s montra/ CHECK  
-Dress for comfort/ *Crash from the back room… “I’m Okaaaay!”....* CHECK  
-Practice summoning in secondary form/ CHECK  
“Looks like i’m ready!” Rylee stated, dawning her satchel and heading for the door.

“Hey wait up!” Logan stammered laughing and blushing. He was hoping towards the door trying to get his left foot into his shoe, bookbag dragging from his left wrist as he stumbled along. He wasn’t use to this much exertion to get out of the door which only made him even more flustered, as he was accustomed to a calmer lifestyle; but with finals all week he wasn’t really getting any time to relax anyway. His worn blue jeans were much more appropriate for the occasion, and after fixating his shoe correctly he threw his small backpack onto his shoulders as he walked out of the apartment in stride, Rylee closing the door behind him and promptly locking it.

“You don’t think the finals are going to be crazy hard do you?” Logan asked calmly with his hands clasped behind his head as they exited the stair well onto the campus. Rylee playfully elbowed him in the rib cage, which sent her loverboy reeling into the bushes at the edge of the sidewalk. She laughed hysterically as Logan picked himself up out of the hedges and angrily picked stray leaves out of his hair. Rylee knew Logan was ticklish, and she would always get him just right every time. 

Recomposing herself, barely, Rylee placed her hands on her hips, “Well if that took you out then you have no hope for passing the elite exams my friend.” she giggled without a drop of seriousness. Logan’s expression quickly darkened at the jeer, and Rylee began to think that she might’ve gone too far on this one.

“Hey,” she began to apologize, “I didn’t really mean it. you’ll do gr-” She had almost finished when suddenly, Logan lunged for her with a crazed smile plastered on his face. She leaped out of the way just in time for him to grab the air she was occupying not moments ago. 

“C’mere you little squirt! It’s only fair!” He said continuing to pursue her with a chuckle like that of a lunatic. Rylee continued to evade his dives and grab attempts with jumps and quicksteps, and she did it in real fear too. She squealed and yelped as she desperately tried to escape her attacker, because if he got her hands on her it would mean tickling beyond comprehension. Like: the bone crushing, mind numbing, air snatching kind of tickling that only Logan could do. So naturally, she ran for her life. 

“LOGAN! Don’t you- AAH HA! STOP! I DON’T WANNA DO THIS IN PUBLIC!! WAH! N-! I SAID DON’T! LOGAN!”

“What’s wrong, you scared?! I just want to- PLAY! Oh stop running! You're only making it harder on yourself!-”

“Logan if we’re late you are SO dead!” She warned as she turned on her heel took off down the cement pathway. Unfortunately, Rylee remembered that she and Logan had woken up early to practice for the combat exams like everyone else in the group, who were undoubtedly already there. Then it hit her. That’s all she had to do. Make it to the sparring blocks. She would be safe from him there, or at least she hoped so. The campus began to brighten up as the goofy pair somehow made their way to the sparring blocks in the rapidly growing sunlight of early fall.

 

….

 

“HEADS UP!!” Donovan blurted out as he came crashing into the solid rock face that was the top of the quarry's highest cliff. Cole dodged the attack effortlessly with a fleeting reverse bound as a huge impact crater sent rock debris flying upward, soon cascading back down like rain… “Ow! Ow! Ow!” Donovan interjected repeatedly as his head was pelted with the heavy stones … make that hail. 

“You could’ve NOT tried to crush me y’know.” Cole muttered sarcastically as she strolled to the edge of the crater, brushing off her shoulders.

“Isn’t that the point of sparring?” Donovan asked, rubbing a knot the size of a baseball on his head with an embarrassed grin.

“Besides, the sparring block program protects us from any damage we take until we hit 100%. So its not like we’re in any real danger.” he continued defensively.

She jumped into the crater as his weapon dispersed into a flurry of floating cyan shards. Cole chuckled, punching the much taller student in the gut as he stood, forcing him to double over.

“Good point,” she said, "But it still hurts. And I think I speak for both of us when I say I would LOVE to go without being paralyzed by reaching that 100%." 

Donovan threw himself onto the broken ground with an over dramatic flail in reaction to the solid blow. “I’m dyiiinnngggg!” he groaned, forcing a hysterical laugh from Cole. “Get up ya’ big moron!” She gasped mid-cackle, just barely kicking Donovan in his ribs. Breaking the joyous atmosphere, Rylee came barrelling into the beaten up sparring block with a look of sheer terror on her face.

“HELP ME!” She squealed. The girl bolted to the crater in which Donovan and Cole were idling and threw herself behind Donovan’s ‘lifeless’ corpse. 

“HE’SAFTERMEDEARGODDONOVANSTOPHIMBEFOREHEKIIILLSMEEEEEEE!!!!!!!” Rylee spat out in a hysterical breath. Donovan reanimated himself out of inquiry. 

“Who is?” He asked with a breathy laugh, looking back at the unarmored girl. The sound of shoes slapping against pavement answered the young carrier’s question as soon as it was uttered. The trio directed their gazes towards the newly opened entrance as a rapidly approaching Logan burst from the dark corridor, eyes ablaze with determination. Before any of them had the necessary time to react, Logan dashed in between the caped partners and snatched Rylee up in a single tumbling roll. Even in the split second it took for Donovan and Cole to turn their heads, Logan had already begun to reap his vengeance on the misfortunate; a.k.a. : tickle Rylee until she begged for mercy. 

“LOGA- AAH! HA HA HA! STOP I CAN’T BREATHE- HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” The helpless girl stammered at a loss for breath. Donovan and Cole failed miserably to mask their laughter at the hilarious scene playing out in front of them. Did that really make them terrible friends? The display was so funny that it almost made Cole forget that they were all in a sparring block. 

“Wait...,” she thought to herself, her laughter fading into a confused frown. Just moments ago, they had been fighting Ruth and Peyton down in the valley, who had started to follow them up the quarry face when Donovan pulled a quick getaway…!

“Donovan!” she yelled, snapping her partner back into focus. Her face spoke faster than her words ever could have, and Donovan snapped into a serious attitude. He took a quick ‘lay-of-the-land’ until his eyes caught a quickly rising glint coming from the forest below the cliff edge just feet away, and it was moving just like that… quickly.

Donovan scrambled to move everyone into a pile screaming, “Get down!” Breaking up the tickle-fest, he threw up his right hand up in a ‘halt’ stance aimed up towards the rapidly growing specs as his eye color quickly changed to an unnatural cyan blue. A dome shaped, transparent blue force field materialized mere seconds before the descending attackers made contact in a flash of soft pink and bright crimson. Though the assailants were both deflected, the crushing force of the strikes being absorbed caused the field to reverberate with a sound similar to that of a gong using auto tune through a megaphone in a train tunnel, causing it to dig into the rocky surface that met the bottom edges of the barrier.

Peyton and Ruth slid in recovery from their harsh landings on the far end of the large crater, closet to the exit doorway. Donovan relaxed his body, causing the glow to leave his eyes and the field to dissipate.

“You do know how dangerous it is to enter the sparring blocks without armor right?” Peyton stated as she and Ruth dispersed their weapons. The duo waltzed up to the pile of dazed students settled at the bottom of the crater with looks of disbelief and superiority staining their faces. 

“Well, ya don’t need to tell me twice.” Rylee responded as she dragged Logan up from his spot on the ground, leading him like an eager child to the door that was still gaping open to the armor stations. As the couple disappeared into the hall with the door slamming shut behind, the remaining few settled down and waited in the bottom of the rock crater. 

Right. Because rock craters are the PERFECT picnic benches. 

“Have those two swapped yet?” Cole asked, in an attempt to prevent silence. 

“Yep, they did it last semester before her birthday remember?” Ruth answered in confidence.

“Thank GOD, because the sickening pre-relationship ‘lubby-dubby’ cutsie talk was giving me morning sickness.” Peyton said in absolute veracity. She had a thing for being the straight forward one of the group, which was necessary with all of the crazy personalities that made up the melting pot of friends currently occupying sparring block one. Kind of like cement; if cement knew MMA and was an agile beast that loved anime and cheesecake with a burning passion.

“Where are the seniors?” Donovan said, quickly changing the subject from soul swapping. 

“Well, Tadashi and Kass have a bone to pick with the two of you.” Trinity shouted from the top of a nearby boulder with her index and middle fingers singling out Donovan and Cole, causing everyone to snap their heads to the right. She hopped down from her perch and strode over to her friends wearing a warm smile, the intricate feather chain in her hair swaying as she walked. She took a seat between Peyton and Ruth, pulling them both in for a hug that left their faces smushed into her plush hooded cowl. 

“They didn’t really move on from your last resonance stunt. You did kinda crush’em.” She finished with a sheepish giggle, Ruth and Peyton wriggling in her grasp. 

“Haters gonna hate!” Cole exhaled extending her hand to Donovan for a low five, which he gratefully completed. The two shared a dorky snicker as the rest of the group eased their nerves. Trinity released her friends from the playful embrace, allowing them to breathe, and settled into an 'Indian style' sitting position. 

For the past week, finals had been dropped on their heads like anvils. Or bombs. Or both. Or better yet; Anvil-shaped-bombs. Needles to say, a moment to relax in a place where they’re all supposed to be working in their respective teams to knock each other’s brains out would not be wasted. 

Today was surprisingly the first day of the elite carriers graduation exams, which they all had the privilege to have an equal chance at. Trinity, Peyton, and Ruth were the first to form a group of three in the elites and the only one in the wide group of comrades. Though Peyton and Ruth were constantly going at it, Trinity anchored them all to sanity with a well hidden iron fist.

Cole and Donovan were both hyperactive jesters that had a surprising hold on their abilities, so they obviously worked amazingly well in battle. 

Etharius and Jade, who were currently absent from the morning practice session for some reason, were both exchange students from combat universities in the Canadian colony system. Being the top fighters in their school's scouting programs by far, the university sought them out proactively in the hopes that the outstanding carriers would transfer. Good play on their part huh? Though they didn't really know each other that well during the switch to San Fransokyo, they got more acquainted with one another as they both found themselves in the same group of friends. 

Rylee and Logan met back in high school and have been sweethearts ever since, sharing pieces of their souls every so often until they found themselves in their current situation; a true swapped relationship and one of the best resonation teams in the entire country. 

Tadashi and Kass, the seniors of the group, were the first team in the elite carrier class from the very beginning of the program. They were the ones who attracted all of these extraordinary first and second years with their outgoing personalities and genuinely attractive nature. At first the two slightly older men seemed intimidating, but their combined performance at the Elite Class Exhibitions drew the others in like moths to a flame. 

But then there was Yokai. 

A strange solo fighter who kind of snaked his way into the group. His grades were flawless due to his astonishing work ethic and his combat style was tough to face in a team -- let alone one-on-one --, and with a reputation like that one would think he’d be a pretty happy guy right? Right. He was actually a really positive guy to have around and the entire group accepted him as part of the family. 

(What? You thought he was going to be some kind of villain? Oh, Please. Don’t make me laugh!) 

He never really excelled in resonating, but he made up for it in his stealthy tactics; utilizing a temporary gaseous hallucinogen he could emit from his very body to disorient his targets and attack when his window was wide open. He was a stealth class carrier, so it wasn't very shocking. His component weapons were deadly efficient in keeping his cover, having a set comprised of a single-edged blade, round shield, and a rare weapon component passed down by his family for generations; the paralytic dart launcher, no doubt the reason he survived among the elite ranks in the first place. His soul shade was an eerie dark blue, like the shade one would see looking down into the depths of the open water while stranded at sea; and the shape was similar to a sea urchin, with it’s seemingly sharp points protruding from all angles. But despite his sketchy cover, the others judged him by his pages, and added a little of their own influence as well. 

Etharius taught him how to be handy with a single edged blade, Trinity and Rylee gave him a few lessons in marksmanship with her crossbow experience, and Tadashi himself taught Yokai the value of a shield. Everything was great. Until his sister was thrown out of the country. 

It came out of nowhere; the crime, the news…. the anger. His sister bared her soul for the one she thought she loved, and in return he shattered it in front of her very eyes. Hiding his dormant signs until it was far too late, her lover was completely soulless when she lowered her defences. Desperate to help, Yokai offered his loving sister his very own soul, but she refused at the hands of her generosity. She wouldn’t dare wish her fate on her own little brother; and so, she accepted her fate as it ripped her family away --and ultimately, her sanity…-- . 

Destroyed, Yokai cast himself out of the group. He reduced his social actions to a bare minimum and began to fall apart. His grades became difficult to maintain as he dwelled on the past, blaming himself for his sister’s demise. However, his combat skills skyrocketed; but at a cost. As his success rate climbed, his soul began to crack, pulling his mental stability down into the watery depths of his darkening soul. His style became a deadly problem as he began to turn alarmingly hostile on his peers in situations where no one was in any serious danger. At least, they shouldn’t have been. 

Now, Yokai keeps to himself. After being isolated as a solo carrier in fear for the safety of university’s other combat students, he spends his time alone in the shadows, wasting away into a shell of his former self. 

 

(......... this proves nothing……..)

 

 

....

 

 

“How long are those two going to take!?” Ruth blurted into the silence. It felt like eons had passed since the sparring block went quiet; aside from the occasional snicker from Donovan as Peyton mouthed out dozens of inside jokes in a triumphant attempt to humiliate him.

*BOOM*

The erupting pillar of smoke that hung in the air on the far wall of the valley was a telltale sign that Tadashi and Kass had gotten fed up with waiting for their pupils and that they were ready, definitely itching for a fight. 

“Sounds like they’re sparring again… shocker.” Cole spouted sarcastically. The group that was once relaxed now stood alert on the edge of the cliff over looking the abandoned quarry in shock. Aside from Cole, who lazily strolled over to the ledge with an unimpressed look paired with a crossed set of arms. The air was filled with faint sounds of clashing metal and joking voices as the fourth-years dashed around under the thick canopy, no-doubt due to the strategy they were putting into action. The valley suddenly went still as all of the previous noises were silenced, like they were all comanded.

“Three….. two….. one……” Peyton counted aloud; just in time for a small ring of fully grown redwoods to crackle like fireworks and fall over with a deafening crash. 

“Wow,” Cole replied in disbelief, “Stalker much?”

Peyton snapped herself from her daze at the comment, “I don’t stalk him! It’s just that Kass and Tadashi always use that move in a dense forest environment. It was Obvious!” She desperately tried to defend her argument, but everyone already knew that the local badass had the hots for Tadashi. Long story short, it was hopeless.

“Would you care for transportation ma’am?” Donovan said holding his hand out to Cole like a butler, eyes once again glowing a brilliant cyan as a concave field materialized under his boots. 

“Thanks,” she replied with a smirk, “but i’ve got this one D.” She summoned her massive blade staff, flipping the weapon over her shoulder and slamming the more dangerous end into the ground all while assuming a runner’s stance with a fluidity that screamed routine. She cocked her head to the side after meeting eyes with her partner. 

“First to take more than 90% damage buys the winner’s drink at Mark’s after finals?”

Donovan encased himself in a sphere of the bright energy almost instantly, “You’re on.” He turned his gaze to the valley before him as he took the same stance as Cole inside his protective sphere.

“On your mark….” Cole began.

“Get set…..” Donovan replied. Both fighters tensed at the anticipation.

“GO!” Trinity yelled from behind. Cole and Donovan flinched as the feather haired heroine crashed down before them on an indented disk of lavender energy she used to slide down the steep rock face like a glowing snow board. Donovan laughed as he followed in pursuit, leaping with his protective barrier over the edge, hovering above the field’s slick inner wall to keep from having to experience the ‘human spin-cycle’ again. That was a dark day in the sparring blocks. 

Cole shot forward with her intense speed right off the cliff face. She landed on the slope just behind the other two, still sprinting with what seemed like minimal effort, with Ruth and Peyton hot on her tail. This was certainly going to be a fight to remember. 

 

(TO BE CONTINUED….)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Ha! I bet you really fell for that one XD! *intense laughter* But seriously, here’s the rest of the chapter….)

 

“Cole, we need to separate them!” Donovan suggested in a harsh whisper. 

“How do you suppose we do that genius?” She shot back with an eye roll. They began spitting directions back and forth at each other from behind nearby pine trees as the sounds of the fight ahead grew louder and the distance grew shorter.

“You get Kass while he’s focused on retreating and i’ll work on Tadashi by grabbing his attention afterwards!” Donovan quietly barked. Cole evaded to the tree he was occupying and lined up back to back. The teammates turned their heads towards each other as they exchanged words. 

“Why can’t I take on Tadashi?!” Cole said with annoyance in her voice.

Donovan quickly responded, “Fine! You can have Tadashi!”

“No, I still want Kass!” she shot back quickly. 

“Wh-?! Okay, y’know what….. jus- just take Kass and get ready!” Donovan barely whispered as he heard the senior carriers break into the small clearing behind their current hiding place. He quietly summoned his weapon as he prepared for the confrontation. 

“Readyyyy…….” he stretched in warning, “Hit It!” He shouted their arrival on the scene with conviction as he leapt into the air and slammed his hammer’s head straight into the forest floor, instantly digging a humongous crater, while Cole jumped up to intersect Kass, who had just dodged a volley of Tadashi’s airborne attacks.

The fourth-year descended rapidly as he made his escape. As he caught sight of the newly formed crater below him, Cole was already recovering from the flying strike she had just placed on his torso. Kass had repositioned himself to land correctly as he fell, soon noticing the blinding white streak across his chest that confirmed the searing hot pain as he stuck his landing; moving his damage meter from 20% to 26%. The wound quickly resealed itself and Kass looked up at Cole in disbelief. 

“Cheap move!” He shot with a smirk.

“You taught me!” She responded. Kass lunged for the target and initiated a new battle with the cocky girl. 

Meanwhile, Donovan had just engaged Tadashi. He kept his eyes on the speedy Kass for far too long, or so it seemed, as Donovan came crashing into his side with a serious blow from his hammer. Tadashi was forcefully sent flying back towards the inner clearing as the square-like white indention on his armor faded, increasing his suit’s damage meter drastically from 16% to 33%. 

“I can’t believe you actually fell for that!” the third year exclaimed with joy. 

“Neither can I!” Tadashi called back with a visible smile. Donovan had become the distracted as he soon came to realize his major fault. Tadashi’s previous comment trailed off into the crater as Donovan turned his head to determine the origin of the dull hiss emanating behind him. To his shocking surprise, his eyes met with a familiar blue concussion bomb that had a rapidly disappearing wick were his enemy was standing only moments ago. Tadashi took the brunt of his hit just to bait him. 

Huh. Now would be a really good time for a fishing pun... Oh well. That’s what happens when you take on an intelligence carrier.

“Ah Cra-” *POW*

Donovan’s frustrated expletive was cut short by the bomb’s sharp detonation just feet away from his face. He was sent into the air by the blast, gripping his weapon by instinct. His damage meter went from 0% to 28% in a heartbeat as the multiple white gashes in his armor resealed. Thanks to his body armor, that blast wasn’t nearly as bad as it could’ve been, but the pain burning its way through his system was as strong as always. As he reached the top of his arc, in an airborne handstand position, Donovan caught sight of Trinity on the ground by the edge of the clearing as she fended off Kass’ air slashes that were being shared with Cole, who was darting from place to place in order to dodge. The experienced senior was relentlessly hurling waves of extreme decompression at the younger targets that acted like phantom blades with his extended scythe; an intimidating technique that had been passed down by his family. Even though they were holding well on their own, Donovan pieced together a plan in an attempt to turn the tables. 

He quickly de-spawned his weapon as he set up a full field around himself. Bracing for impact, Donovan called out to Trinity -- who was also encased inside of her own lavender field --.

“INCOMING!” he blurted out ecstatically.

Kass side-stepped out of Donovan’s growing shadow, only to have Cole appear and push him back with a blade thrust he easily blocked. Just as she had planned. 

Having been in battle with these two for what felt like an eternity, Trinity dispersed her barrier and quickly bounded out of range.

With Donovan only a few seconds from flattening her, Cole spun her blade in a flashy show of expertise as she called out to her partner.

“Up & Out?!” she blurted.

“6 O’clock!” he responded in confirmation. With a quick nod and a flash of bright turquoise light, Cole transformed her weapon into its’ secondary form. After the light broke away, the new weapon stood as a pair of short staffs ending in thick crooked blades that resembled that of her staff’s original blade. 

No later had the weapons solidified, Donovan came within jumping distance. Cole swiftly hunkered down as he closed in. Suddenly, she shot up at lighting speed, crossing her blades as they came into contact with the blue energy field. The sheer force of her ‘attack’ almost instantly rocketed Donovan, barrier and all, vertically into the air. After landing, she quickly got to work ascending past her partner, hopping between two enormous tree trunks and leaving nothing but a blur to signal her location. 

Just as Donovan’s cyan orb reached the lowest branches of the canopy, Cole materialized behind him. She quickly side swiped with both blades, sending the orb and her partner towards the massive tree trunk. As Cole made her descent, Donovan dispersed his field and respawned his hammer just as he landed feet first into the trunk’s outer layer of bark, crushing it under his weight. Before gravity could make too much of a difference on his position, he pressed the trigger above his upper grip. The hammer’s head rotated ninety degrees and ignited a bomb within the chamber. The sound was deafening as the explosive shot the mallet head towards the currently distracted Kass and pushed Donovan into the sturdy bark even harder.

Kass barely had time to react as the mallet came screaming towards his position. He dashed in reverse as Donovan’s projectile hammer made yet another crater in the rocky forest floor.

“Everybody’s taking shots at the senior citizen today huh?!” Kass shouted at the elevated carrier.

Donovan began reeling himself back to his detached weapon head with another press of the trigger. 

He was now flying in from his perch with both hands on the staff, closing in on the ground combatants just as a small orb came trailing his path from seemingly nowhere. The young carrier didn’t need to turn his head to see what was following him; and to be honest, he didn’t want to. He was very fond of that ever so familiar dull hiss that filled his ears. Tadashi, who wasn’t even a stealth carrier, had done it again without the junior having ever noticed. His hopes were all but in vain as Donovan was only comforted by the force of the concussion bomb’s explosion against the back of his skull as he was forced into a belly flop that kicked up a healthy amount of dust. To add insult to very real injury, his damage meter raised from 28% to 41%. Greeeeeeaaat.

His hammer dispersed into a swarm of cyan chips that faded quickly as Tadashi waltzed from behind a shady redwood trunk up to his partner who was also exaggeratedly calm. 

He spoke in a comically didactic tone to the face planted elite lying in the middle of the dust cloud, “Y’know, if you’d just think ahead a bit more instead of trying to smash everything in sight, you might find that it would be easier to actually hit us.” Donovan mumbled a sarcastic ‘Ha Ha’ with a mouthful of gravel as he tried to still his nerves in the hopes of making the high pitched ringing in his ears subside.

“You also might want to work on your blade throwing Cole.” Kass blurted out smugly as he sauntered forward. 

“That last one actually almost hit the air next to my head.” He mocked the girl, knowingly building up her anger as she swaggered up to him at close range with a slightly annoyed scowl on her face.

“Fine,” she replied in an eerily calm voice, “ just hold still and i’ll make sure that this time I hit the hot air INSIDE your head!”

The angry elite respawned her dual blades in a preparatory motion to send them flying at her smack-talking opponent. But before Cole could chuck her blades at Kass’ irking grin, Peyton’s spinning hook shield flew in from the tree canopy above, prompting both of the older elites to dodge. However, Kass had a close call with the death utensil as it left a decent gash in his left forearm; boosting his damage from the previous 26% to a fresh 29%. 

“Dammit! How do they always see it coming?!” Peyton asked aloud, the question not aimed at any particular person, as she and Ruth landed with a nimble flip. She crossed her arms in a sassy fashion as Ruth began scanning the area for the third member of their party.

“Hey guys!” Trinity beamed as she popped up behind an unsuspecting Ruth, getting her to scream with ease. Seriously though, not a single person could understand how a carrier without a stealth skill set could possibly sneak up on others that well. It would just be a mystery for all of time to inquire.

The shield sticking out of the ground blew into a swarm of crimson shards as the trio regained their composure. 

“I am NOT off to a good start today huh?” Donovan groaned with a hand scratching the back of his head as he emerged from the settling dust of his own handmade, er- ...really ‘facemade,’ impact site. 

“I think i’ll order the 56 oz mega espresso!” Cole taunted, supporting herself on his shoulder. Apparently she let go of her aggravation with Kass just to come over and prod at her partner’s standings in their previously discussed bet.

“I’m not a billionaire y’know!” He responded in complete terror. Donovan had a tendency to be broke in the worst situations. Which was every situation.

“Well now that the gang’s all here!” Peyton mocked in a corny country accent, “Lets get this party started.” Peyton respawned her primary blade shield only to move directly to her secondary weapon form; a pair of mid-length twin scythes that were adorned with the grip guards of traditional twin hooks. 

“Show off.” Ruth grumbled as she spawned her own weapon; a double edged blade with clearly visible segments along its gleaming length. 

“Not without me you don’t!” Trinity interjected as she stood out in front of the two acrobats. Trinity summoned her very own combat staff that was tipped with a twin hook’s blade on either end.

The trio started a chain reaction of weapon summonings and battle stances that washed over the group of friends in a wave of anxious suspense. A suspense that was broken much too soon. 

Not even the speed carriers were fast enough to get out of the wide range of the gauntlet duo’s ground crushing impact. Rylee and Logan had both landed, fully armored and opposite fists down, in the middle of the gathered circle, sending everyone reeling backwards in whichever direction with the resulting shockwave.

“Sorry,” Rylee started, “Did we crash the party?” Logan finished. The couple wore the same crazy smile as they stood up at the center of their shallow yet wide impact crater. 

“Not bad you two!” Kass chuckled with a sly breath as he and Tadashi jumped back to their previous location. 

“Hey! Before anyone gets any funny ideas-” Kass began, suddenly cut off by an arrow whizzing past his head. Everyone turned their gaze over to an embarrassed Ruth, who had just fired the shot from her now drawn bladed crossbow. 

“Sorry…” she replied with a sheepish blush, instantly setting her weapon by her side.

“Like I was saying,” Kass resumed with caution in his voice, “With finals starting today, we wanted to wish you all the best of luck in your singles tests.”

“We already know that all of you succeeded in both your written and partnered combat exams.” Tadashi added. 

“So, we decided that instead of doing something you already know by heart…” he trailed off, “We’d like to use this last sparring session to hone your skills in: ...RESONATING.” The news registered almost immediately among the underclassmen, eliciting an excited buzz. 

“Alright everyone, you know the drill!” Tadashi beamed to the group. 

“WEAPONS DOWN!” he called out. In response, every carrier present, including the seniors, set their arms by their sides and despawned all of their weapons in a single, uniform movement. The result was a mass of multicolored shards floating momentarily before disappearing from view. Each of the respective partnerships stood in clusters with their feet touching and arms parallel to their waists.

“POSITIONS!” Kass ordered, now with a tone of higher command. Once again, they all responded. This time, each partnership assumed their resonance positions. 

The entirety of the group bowed their heads in concentration as they moved in complete unison. The trio --Trinity, Peyton, & Ruth-- lifted their right fists so that each of them touched each other's by the knuckles. Donovan and Cole prepared the same stance as Tadashi and Kass. They placed their own fists together just in front of their chests, mirroring each other like statues. Rylee and Logan simply entwined the fingers of one hand each as the joined appendages hung between their hips.

An intense and unnerving electricity settled into the air. Nothing but the artificial sound of forest life and genuine calm breaths could be heard. It was almost peaceful. Until the silence was shattered by a single coarse voice.

“RESONATE!” Kass barked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there faithful reader! if you're reading this, it means you probably want more from this series; and to that I say 'I will NOT disappoint!' I'm currently working on concept art along with a few friends for this series so i'll keep you all posted as the info comes in. I'd LOVE to see your own character designs and concept art through the comments! Ya'never know if I need to insert a minor character here or there ;-}.... [plus I just like feeling noticed ^^'...] So until next time peeps of the interwebz!!
> 
> P.s.: HAPPY BELATED B-DAY 'LIEUTENANT PENGUIN' XD!!!


	4. The Beginning of the....well... Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Failure of the exam,” he warned with a grave tone, “ will result in the immediate disqualification for the international scouting program.”
> 
> The news blew the group back with the force of a thousand hurricanes. (Seriously, people stumbled.)  
> IMMEDIATE. DISQUALIFICATION.
> 
> The words hung in the air, making it stale with anxiety as everyone in the group swallowed. Hard.
> 
> “They’ve all got this right?” Kass whispered to Tadashi as the others continued to watch the screen. 
> 
> “Of course they do.” Tadashi replied with a tinge of fear in his voice. He’d worked with all of these kids since the beginning, and he wasn’t ready to even imagine parting ways with any of them. Even the ones that were currently late, as always.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tadaaaaaa! The newest installment is finally here! All of the major protagonists are finally introduced XD! As well as a few hints and or obvious declarations on love interests ;-). Please enjoy this work that has all but consumed me for the time being.

“Attention all elite combat students.”

A lone voice boomed over the valley, shaking the virtual ground in weak tremors. The electricity that was running through the air not so long ago was just shot dead by the loud announcement, and the carriers had all stopped in their tracks. It had only been seconds after the multitude of the group had finished their resonances. Group by group, eyes stopped glowing and weapons de-spawned in flurries of fleeting colored pixels as they each walked into the center of the battered clearing with their heads tilted towards the shimmering sky.

The cloudless blue atmosphere was suddenly obstructed with a large, white rectangular projection that took up enough space to traverse the entire valley, immediately followed by the breakdown of the entire environment. With the group of comrades at the center of it all, the valley began to tremble. The mountainous quarry and rocky walls quickly began to dissipate, like someone hit fast forward on the process of erosion. Full grown redwoods sank into the ground like snails darting back into their shells. Boulder and undergrowth alike were sucked into the earth until the only thing that remained was an endless field of knee-high golden wheat that stretched as far as the eye could see, and the carriers were right in the middle of the vast expanse.

Talk about the middle of nowhere…

Just above their heads, the white projection reoriented itself down to a more reasonable angle for viewing as the screen momentarily flashed, resulting in the view of a light skinned man. He was most likely of caucasian and latino descent, with a long rounded face and a sharp nose. He had a full head of short salt & pepper hair and a goatee to match. Probably in his early forties, he had a ‘rough around the edges’ look going on, even in his black suit. Despite his pair of non-threatening bushy eyebrows, his piercing blue eyes held a steely grip on his audience, even through the camera he must be looking into to make this announcement. Steely grips aside, the group stood tall in respect for the man before them.  
After all, he was the dean of the university.

“Assuming that I have all of your attention,” Dean Crius (Kree-us) began in his reassuringly didactic tone, “I would like to personally congratulate all of you who have made it to this final stage of preparation in becoming a national scout.”

“As you know, being in this elite program has drastically reduced the amount of time it would have taken to become a national scout in a normal combat carrier program. However, the duties of a national scout are no easy task. For as long as you fight for our nation outside of our borders, you will be risking your life to protect us all from the savage results of a world we once knew. For centuries, the world outside of our own separate technologies has created many obstacles to combat our very fight for survival, and as a national scout, it is your job to make new discoveries. To traverse the many known and unknown regions of the world and supply the many nations with information of the outside that just may help us all fight back. And so, to prepare you for the many challenges to come, you have harnessed your abilities and refined your skills here at the university in the hopes that you will succeed beyond the walls. To test what you have accomplished over the course of this program accurately, the heads of the technology department have created a multitude of scenarios for the solo combat final exams from information gathered by the generations of scouts before you. By utilizing the many accounts of enemies you may face beyond the borders, we have created a well developed testing system here, and with so many possible threats, no student will have the same enemy in testing.” 

Dean Crius paused his speech, as if to let his last words sink in; and sink in they did. Without a single word shared, each of the group members is struck with an unprecedented weight in their chest. No one really knows what they’re getting into. For once in this program, they won’t have each other to rely on. 

The uneasy tension of the group is quickly snapped by the Dean resuming his speech.

“The rules of your final exam are simple,” he starts, “the damage reading program you have all now become accustomed to in the sparring blocks will be implemented during each of your tests. Each of you will have twenty four hours to complete the exam. To pass, you must either defeat your opponent within the allotted timeframe or survive the same amount of time necessary to complete the exam. Defeat your opponent in battle, and you will automatically be deemed a passing student of the university’s elite carrier solo exam. Survive the test with less than 100% damage, and you will be evaluated by the board of the International Scouting Agency, along with myself, to determine your ability to succeed as a scout. This decision will rely mainly on your individual acquired damage percentages and strategies put forth during your exams.”

“Failure of the exam,” he warned with a grave tone, “ will result in the immediate disqualification for the international scouting program.”

The news blew the group back with the force of a thousand hurricanes. (Seriously, people stumbled.) 

IMMEDIATE. DISQUALIFICATION.

 

The words hung in the air, making it stale with anxiety as everyone in the group swallowed. Hard. 

“They’ve all got this right?” Kass whispered to Tadashi as the others continued to watch the screen. 

“Of course they do.” Tadashi replied with a tinge of fear in his voice. He’d worked with all of these kids since the beginning, and he wasn’t ready to even imagine parting ways with any of them. Even the ones that were currently late, as always. 

Kass leaned in close to Tadashi again in a nervous fashion, as if he were even warier than before about the others hearing him.  
He whispered quietly, “But, what about-”

“Don’t.” Tadashi grunted harshly. He wouldn’t get himself dragged into that again. Not while he had anything to say about it.

“They’ll do fine. We are their mentors after all.” He followed much more forgivingly. As the seniors finished their side chat the dean began to do the same.

“Now, without any further delay, will all personnel please vacate the sparring blocks.” He voiced as more of a polite command than a question. 

As if on command, the environment changed once again. The wheat that covered the landscape was slowly sucked into the floor while the rest of the world around it simply faded out of existence with a short buzz, revealing the true nature of the surrounding room. The sleek onyx floor was divided into a clean grid by luminescent glowing white lines. The square tiles were about a meter long on each side and covered every surface in the gigantic room. Like all of the blocks, the colossal enclosure was ironically shaped in a massive oval prism (go figure), with the entrance placed mid height on one of the wider curved walls. The towering walls that led up to the flat ceiling were at least four hundred feet tall , and the floor spanned around three and a half square miles easy. 

The team reacted in unison, sticking to a tight but somewhat casual group as they all made their way quietly the area just under the exit doors perched high on the wall above them. Without any visible command, the dark tile that the students were currently occupying was bordered by a sudden red light. The small platform shook slightly as it unlocked itself from the floor, quickly ascending to the exit waiting above, making the weight of anxiety that much heavier on the students. Or maybe that was just the positive G’s the quick ascent was adding to their bodies.

Same difference. 

“Alright everybody,” Kass began, “this is where all of your training comes into play.”

“This is the final assessment of your abilities. A solo test designed to be the most challenging threat you could possibly face without others,” Tadashi clarified.

“You won’t have a teammate to resonate with,” Kass warned, “ you’ll only have yourselves to rely on in both battle and survival situations. No enemy is to be underestimated, BUT, no enemy is too great for any of you.” 

“It’s just important for you all to know that each of you has the brains and the ability to pass this test,” Tadashi added as the exit became closer and closer. 

“We’re both betting on you guys, and WHEN you pass,” he continued, “we can all officially group together as a national scouting unit, so we can take on international assignments... as a team.” The news brought about a jumble of wide grins, hugs, high fives, fist bumps and overall rejoicing from the younger elites as the platform slowed to a halt in front of the now opened exit doors. 

“So go do us proud you bunch of trigger happy psychos!” Kass interjected as a finishing statement, playfully nudging Cole on the shoulder. The group laughed lightly at the statement, knowing it was only the best of wishes.

As the group walked through the open doorway, the low electric hum of the platform lowering once more faded from earshot while the soft ring of metal colliding confirmed that sparring block one was now closed.

"'Damage Assesment Suit Programing' is disengaged." An artificial voice announced as the group passed through the entry chamber to the armory. The voice didn't phase anyone as they kept moving forward to the hallway ahead. 

Since there was no way to be certain which students were going to test first, due to the limited number of sparring blocks and the sign-up process adding a random factor to the order, the companions didn’t stop to change out of their armor in the utilities area. The group was heading for the staircase leading to the main lobby of the sparring blocks, passing all of the usual equipment that littered the long room; bags of devices designed to read attack power -which resembled large stainless steel bowling balls-, various combat androids covered in battle scars, programmable targets ranging in size from ‘tennis ball’ to ‘dinner table’, rows of wide armor lockers with a single student’s name on each, countless computers and machines for developing armor, and numerous more fun gadgets to train with. 

Without any indication, Tadashi and Kass split off from the group upon making their way through the locker room style armor stations, moving right, towards a metallic door on the far end of the room. 

“Mentor identification required.” commanded the automated security system as the seniors approached the handleless door. A palm scanner slowly ejected from the wall on either side of the entrance. Both Tadashi and Kass placed their right hand on the smooth pads before them, allowing the computer to analyze their hands with a quick flash of green light.

“Identification accepted.” the voice confirmed, retracting the devices back into the wall. 

“Welcome: Tadashi Hamada -&\- Kasper Warfield.” It announced loudly in the otherwise quiet room, snapping the door up into the wall and exposing the dark broom closet of a room before them. Even though Tadashi didn’t show any sign of acknowledging the announcement, Kass cringed at the mention of his real name aloud and snapped a squinting gaze over his shoulder at hunchbacked Cole who was snickering with a hand over her mouth at the full pronunciation like she always did, quickening her pace to the staircase with the others. He grumbled something incoherent and turned back towards the small room in front of him as the younger elites started to vanish from sight into the stairwell. 

Tadashi headed in first with Kass bringing up the rear, trying not to worry about the worst possible outcomes of the next few days. He’d been trying to recreate his future ever since he started running away from his past, and having everything he’d worked so hard to change fall apart now would be too much to handle.  
Staring down at his shoes as he walked, He and Kass took a few short steps into the unlit room and onto a large raised circular pedestal, but he didn't notice or even care for that matter. 

Tadashi’s mind was racing. Violent memories of stressful arguments and the student showcase burning down began forcing themselves into his mind, racking his body with anger and guilt. He couldn’t stop them from flooding back, the memories. Each one a painful reminder of how he got where he was and why he kept telling himself he could never go back.  
Everything around him went out of focus as the sound of crackling flames filled his ears, burning his very sanity as it grew in strength. He was absent mindedly trembling now, trying forcefully to contain his distress. He felt his very soul weakening inside his chest. Becoming more and more fragile as his condition worsened. Until a single voice called out to him from the inferno, still young and trembling with fear…

 

“TADASHI!-”

 

The voice yanked reality back into place without warning, making the memories fade away like a fire suddenly doused in water.

“Tadashi? Tadashi, are you alright?” Kass repeated again in a worried tone. Tadashi hadn’t registered that his friend was shaking him quite vigorously by his shoulder in an attempt to bring him back from whatever shock he’d gone into. He also hadn’t noticed the tear that had just started to fall from his left eye, breaking off from the bottom row of eyelashes and landing quietly on floor between his shoes. 

Snapping his head up to recompose himself, he gazed out into the armory in front of him and involuntarily locked onto the only moving object he could see. 

The last group member, now slowing her walking speed in acknowledgment of Tadashi’s gaze, was Peyton, strutting along in her crimson armor towards the stairwell after her friends; but her eyes were locked on his own. His heart’s racing tempo calmed progressively as the eye contact continued, filling his mind with some soft emotion he’d probably label as attraction. 

Peyton, on the other hand, was falling to pieces inside her own head:

“Oh no. He’s looking at me. What do I do?! I hope my hair’s okay. Sweet jesus he looks good! Wait, I didn’t say that out loud did I? Damn it, this eye contact is lasting too long! But his eyes are really pretty... NO. Stop that. He’s gonna think i’m a creep! Or a stalker! *gasp* OR A CREEPY STALKER! NOOOOOOOO! NOT A CREEPY STALKER!” 

Still staring, Peyton’s legs kept her body moving as if it were on ‘don’t make yourself look like a clutz’ autopilot, guiding her to the stairwell without any noticable accidents to avoid anymore awkward eye contact. The slight stumble of Peyton nearly tripping over her own legs was well hidden by the wall openning into the stairwell, securing her personal dignity and ending the star struck staring contest before it had the chance to turn into something more.

“Y-yeah,” Tadashi stuttered, wiping the water from his eyes, “i’m fine.” The door that separated Tadashi and Kass from the rest of the armory interrupted the awkward tension in the room as it quietly dropped out of the ceiling above the doorway and snapped back into place, enclosing the two mentors in partial darkness.

Distracting himself, Tadashi directed his attention to the keypad that was perched on a waist high pole next to the glowing white circular pad he and his still slightly concerned friend were standing on. He started putting in a code on the pad, pausing here and there as he determined the correct sequence. 

“Do you think they’ll all be okay?” Kass asked in worry, looking at the glowing white floor. Tadashi hit the enter key as he copied Kass’s posture, eyeing the humming white circle below as the light began to grow brighter and brighter.

“It’ll be okay,” Tadashi said supportively, mostly to himself, “they’re just walking into the fire.”  
Kass laughed at the jesting comment.

“And just when the frying pan was starting to get all cozy.” he added. They both grinned at their shared joke, nonreactive to the beams of light that were pulling their bodies apart into vanishing lines with increasing speed.

"Y'know you still haven't talked to her outside of this sparring block loverboy." Kass stated as a matter of fact.

"Shut up." Tadashi muttered as a dull blush started to creep up his face. The humming of the bright white pedestal under their feet was almost deafening in the confined space, which was fortunate for Kass since the noise drowned out his mocking snicker. 

The pedistal was now vibrating with intense energy, until the occupants blinked out of existence without a sound. The noise emitted by the machinery died down to a slight creak until the light coming from the pedestal went out all together. 

And then the room was still.

 

 

…

 

 

“Where are they?!” He said in an anxious tone. He was pacing back and forth in front of Jade, who was sitting nonchalantly on a bench that sat flush to the bleach white wall behind her. She had her legs crossed while she messed around with her phone, barely paying attention to the nervous wreck that was Etharius. They were both sporting full combat armor in preparation for the up coming finals, but that was obvious considering everyone else in the crowded lobby was also doing so.

“The Dean just gave his speech,” she said somewhat irked at his unnecessarily nervous demeanor, “so they’re probably on the way her just like EVERYBODY ELSE in the sparring blocks. So would you please calm your tits before I get slapped with overactive man boob?” 

Usually that kind of comment would elicit a snappy comeback from him, but Etharius was so on edge that Jade’s jeer flew clear over his head. In fact, he wasn’t like himself at all. Etharius, now nicknamed ‘Etho’ by most of the group, was usually a calm and collected 150+ pound sack of elite combat carrier. The last few days leading up to finals had been all but nerve wracking for him. The things riding on his performance in this last exam dictated his entire life from this point on, so was it really that unreasonable to feel the pressure? Seriously. He had missed the last day of training for crying out loud! How was he supposed to do this?! 

Before his mind could freak out more and implode on itself into a doubt singularity (from which no hope could escape), a familiar voice called out from the other end of the crowded atrium, demanding his attention.

“Etho!” Ruth called out with her hands flailing in some hyperactive form of semaphore. 

Finally, something to get his mind off of all this stressful life crushing doubt; his friends, who had actually started making a bit of a scene trying to call the two of them over. 

“Whoa!” Jade almost squeaked as Etho yanked her by her forearm. He wasted no time getting Jade from sitting to dragged-like-a-corpse speed as he made a beeline to their waiting companions. Pushing through these people was like trying to run in waist deep mud; frustrating and super counterproductive. He was being pushed against every inch of everybody’s everything and the dead weight of dragging Jade wasn’t helping.

“Y’know,” he struggled to spit out, “you could- *strain* use your legs to- *grunt* help out!”

“But it actually feels kinda nice.” She whined, jokingly. After a few more seconds of watching him sputter like a fish out of water, Jade tucked her phone away and got onto her own two feet. After Etho released her, Jade stretched her arms and cracked her knuckles as if to say ‘watch ‘n learn big guy’. Squeezing just in front of Etharius, Jade broke into an easy stride through the dense crowd; of course, with the aid of her powerful and simplistically blunt interjections.

“S’cuse me! C'mon through! Move it or lose it sweety! Beat it! Stampede! Pardόn, not really. Thank you! Make a hole and make it wide!”

Subtle. As usual.

 

The powerful torrent of raging people soon subsided and the group stood before them with arms held wide and smiles beaming.  
In hindsight, it was kinda creepy.

“Finally! The gang’s all here!” Trinity blurted excitedly. That was all it took to burst the dam of friendly greetings as the mass of friends swallowed the two newest additions. The group morphed into a ball of incoherent laughing and talking like the many other cliques that filled the circular lobby of the sparring block building. 

The large circular room had a high retractable domed glass ceiling that curved down to the black marble floor with sleek white walls that curved instead of jutting out with sharp edges. Six tall & slender arching doorways led to dark halls that guided students to the locker rooms connected to the sparring blocks further down. Three of these dipped into the reflective white walls on either side of a large screen at the far end of the lobby. The very front of the room was a large curved staircase that led to street level through a magnificent wall of glass doors. Large, moving metallic sculptures hung from the ceiling by the entrance, dangling not by a thread, but by electromagnets embedded in the ceilings. 

But the most interesting architectural feature by far was the small island of greenery resting in the middle of the floor. Littered with large dark rocks for students to sit on, a koi pond on one side and a rock garden on the other, & in the center, a lone wooden red bench resting by the base of a strapping bonsai tree. The perfect natural center piece for such a clean cut modern interior.

By now, the group had simmered down after the initial reunion; and just then, the universe got the message to keep moving. All of the chatter in the room dimmed down to a low hum as Dean Crius made his second appearance of the day on the screen displayed up on the far wall of the lobby. 

“Welcome again students,” he boomed, “If you don’t mind, i’d like to skip the intros and get to what you’ve all been waiting for.” The room picked up a little as the air filled with approving laughter and slight tension at his words. 

“The order of those taking exams, as per the usual, has been determined via the order of sign ups.” He clarified.

“So, will the students listed on the monitor please report to their assigned blocks within the next thirty minutes to begin your exams.” The image of the Dean’s face faded into a list of ten names and a sparring block for each. Out of the group, Ruth, Peyton, and Donovan were up for the first round of testing, which caught the attention of the entire group of friends. 

The Dean’s voice continued to flow out of the speakers as the list embedded itself on the large screen, “Those of you who are registered for the exam are free to leave the building as you please. The full list of students who will be testing in order is available at the front desk of each campus building, as well as the Institute’s home page; however, it is recommended that students who are registered for the exam check in to the sparring block every six to seven hours to keep up with any current developments.”

The list faded momentarily and the Dean’s visage resurfaced once more, “I wish you all the best of luck in your battles.” 

His tone was strong, and it had a genuine spark of appreciation that was inspiring to the students who had worked so hard to be here.

“Fight hard. Be brave. And show the rest of the world you’re ready to lead.” 

Crius’ smiling face faded into the list of round one names once more, and the room was now live with electricity as ten individuals began to ready themselves for the fight to come.

“Awwwww!! I wanted to be in round one!” Cole pouted playfully, landing a dig in Donovan’s shoulder. He flinched laughing at the display to keep the good energy flowing.

“Huh, and what’s with you signing up so early Ruth?” He asked genuinely puzzled.

“I thought you of all people would want to go last.” 

All the group’s eyes locked on the girl in question, expecting an answer. And they got one.

“It was all Peyton’s idea!” Ruth nearly squealed in accusation.

“She was dragging me to the sign up booth after practice a few weeks ago and she wouldn’t do it without someone to go down with her. So-” She put up her hands in a defensive ‘don’t ask me’ pose and tilted her head towards Peyton, who was now snickering at the memory. She wasn’t trying to hide anything there. She owned up to her action wholeheartedly. It just so happened that said action was apparently pretty funny.

“Well I think those of us who aren’t about to test should go find out where we stand on the list.” Logan added, now giving Rylee a piggy-back ride.

“All those in favor say ‘Aye’.” Jade continued with a smirk, followed by a series of unique voices shouting ‘Aye’.

“All opposed?” Trinity offered to the group, now perched on top of Cole’s shoulders. A brief moment of silence was followed by a joyous ‘motion carried’ and short break of laughter.

“Good luck you guys!” Rylee encouraged as the group sauntered off to the front entrance steps in the now slightly less crowded room. Trinity laughed playfully as she pulled her left hand into a fist by her side and hunched over, pointing forward with her right in an ‘Onward!’ motion, getting Cole to pick up speed. Rylee accepted the nonexistent challenge and lifted her right arm off of Logan’s chest and pointed after Trinity and Cole just in front of them with an encouraging, “MUSH!”

The three friends left behind were smiling and waving off their fellow companions in joy, except for Ruth, who was absentmindedly waving to one person particular. As if she were in a daze, Ruth was waving a rather bashful goodbye to none other than Etho, who was now walking through the glass doors of the lobby entrance with the others, but not without a brief moment of eye contact that left Ruth with a blissfully peaceful sigh parting her smile. 

“Are you done yet?” Peyton asked chuckling, snapping Ruth from her roaming imagination and back to the real world with force. 

“What!? I- Huh?” Ruth sputtered, trying desperately to regain her composure. Both Peyton and Donovan were amused at the sight of their friend, who was known for keeping a level head when it came to social interaction, in such a vulnerable state.

“Ruth,” Donovan aided, still smiling, “You were floating around in ‘Etho-Land’ again.”

The tremor in his voice was undoubtedly laughter, and Peyton’s head nod in agreement only made Ruth’s face flush with red, which she attempted to hide in the neck of her top. Of course, this did nothing but draw more attention to her embarrassment.

“You’ve known him for like three months and you still haven’t said anything to him aside from ‘Hi’, ‘See you later’, and ‘I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to spill my scalding hot chocolate all over your lap and expensive jeans and upper torso and abdomen and advanced pyrotechnics notes that you’ve been working on for weeks.’” Peyton spat out in a high pitched mocking voice.

Ruth cringed at the memory and stuffed her face even further into the fabric of her shirt. It was obvious to everyone that she had a soft spot for the canadian transfer student. Something about the way he looked at her with those unnaturally piercing red eyes just sent her into an incoherent frenzy of babbling and, on one occasion, choking. His personality was just as balanced as hers. Not that she really needed to convince herself, what with all of the reminders she got from her friends telling her so. He was an outstanding student. He loved to make intricate displays of creativity, usually involving explosives of some kind -which would normally be mildly concerning to most-. He got anxious at the same things she did. He greatly appreciated his friends. Heck, he even loved dogs! It was just a plus that he happened to be one of the most attractive guys on campus.  
And yet, she couldn’t work up the nerve to actually start talking to him, even though she could fight him in the sparring blocks during practice without any hesitation. 

That logic never really made sense to her either.

 

Feeling it necessary to spare her any further torture, Donovan spoke, intervening, “Well I don’t know about you two but i’m gonna wait out here for a sec before my exam.”

Thankful for the change in topic, Ruth re-emerged from her shell of shame and jumped at the new topic. She needed a distraction, and the test that was about to determine whether they make it or break it in the world and justified the money and time put into this extraneous program seemed like the perfect thing. 

“Yeah,” she sighed in sharp approval, “I should probably get to my block though. I need to steel myself for this one.” She supported the statement with a small shake to loosen herself up.

“I should probably stay out here for a while.” Peyton said, scanning the crowd in all directions.

“I should go find blondie and wish her good luck. She’s up in round one with us too.” she added, trying to find her friend. 

“Here we go!” Donovan beamed, offering his fists to both friends as a ‘let’s do this’ gesture. The friends exchanged exploding fistbumps with one another, only to disperse shortly after.

That was all it took. No huge motivational speech required. Those fistbumps were all that was needed. All the support, courage, and fear that was being bottled up inside was communicated with a simple connecting of knuckles. (Crazy how friendship works huh?)

As his friends disappeared from view, seemingly swallowed alive by the moderate crowd, Donovan calmly walked up to the towering Bonsai in the center of the enclosed atrium, resting alone on the red bench by the massive tree’s corkscrew trunk.

Bundles of dark green leaves at the end of each thick branch reduced light pouring in from the ceiling into blotchy blemishes on the dark shadow that encompassed the ground where he sat. He was hunched over with his elbows on his knees, eyeing the ground like he was winning a heated staring contest and swaying to the beat of some imaginary song. Donovan wasn’t scared or anything, although it would be a flat out lie if he didn’t admit that he was pretty nervous, but he wasn’t very good at using most methods to hype yourself up for an important event… or anything for that matter. 

From loud emotional release music sessions that had his mail slot overflowing with complaints and very colorfully worded angry letters to a simply catastrophic yoga class -seriously; there were some things that he just had to accept that he couldn’t do, and turning into an unbaked human pretzel was currently at the top of his list- nothing had worked out for him. Eventually, he found his perfect pre-game ritual that he later deemed ‘The Goldfish Technique’. (Hey! Stop laughing! There’s a perfectly reasonable explanation! Just keep reading…*grumble*)

Since the common goldfish is estimated to have an attention/memory span of just five seconds, all he did was fill his head with multiple changing topics and actions until he had completely pushed the weight of the event at hand out of his mind and therefore, off of his shoulders. It didn’t really click the way he explained it to his friends, mainly because they couldn’t get past the name, but he stuck with it. He figured it was better to roll with something that sounded a little stupid and left you solo for a while but worked than something that made him feel ridiculous and yielded little results. (Still funny now?... That’s what I thought.)

Pausing his quickfire thinking process, he poked his brain for anything that was heavy with importance. Body frozen as he stared absentmindedly at the short grass under his feet, he prayed that his search would turn up empty. Since the universe saw humor in cruel irony, Donovan’s sigh of relief switched to a sigh of frustration mid-wind as the stress of the exam that he so desperately wanted to discard resurfaced at the frontline of his thought process, nearly twice as prominent now as it was before. Fantastic.

Universe: 1 - Goldfish: Zip

Annoyed by his inability to leave the subject alone, he leaned back with another disgruntled noise as a display of his disapproval, tossing his head back to meet the trunk’s curved body so that he could look directly towards the sky. He was able to relax his body, but unfortunately not his mind, as he gazed aimlessly into the bansai's canopy. The noise of the crowd filling the room quickly dissipated around Donovan, like someone was getting fed up with the volume and hastily turned the dimmer switch. Once again, he was looking for something to distract himself with, swiveling his head weakly back and forth in a manner that almost suggested he just take a nap here under the tree and skip the test, but that wasn’t an option has was even going to acknowledge at this point. 

Time seemed slow as the rocking continued, making the rest of the world seem hazy and his eyelids heavier. When out of seemingly nowhere, Donovan’s eyes locked onto a small glint in the lowest limbs above his head. He ceased his head swiveling and furrowed his brow in slight confusion, giving the small movement his undivided attention as he tried to focus in on the fuzzy spec. As the world around him slid back into existence, the shining spec revealed its’ identity. It was in fact, a tiny spider; slowly descending from its' untouched web on a single thread of silk.

Donovan loved spiders. Okay that was a flat out lie. He actually hated the majority of the arachnids. Anything with eight legs that moved fast, utilized potentially fatal venom, and or required more than a rolled up, “Carrier Tech: Monthly,” to dispatch was off limits in his mind. But something about the miniscule variety amazed him. The way they could perform impossible feats, thanks to years of precise evolution, was captivating nearly to the point of jealousy. 

His concerned expression melted into an awe inspired smile as he sat back up, leaning in to inspect the creature further. 

Where most would put enough distance between themselves and the bench to be well on the other side of the planet, Donovan did something that Little Miss Muffet would’ve fainted over had she seen it. He lifted his hand, and gently reached to aline his palm with the spider’s path. Though he’d reluctantly handled spiders before, and touching them was never the first thing to come to mind, the way this one moved was so invitingly calm that throwing caution to the wind was now and understatement. It was more like throwing caution into an EF5.

He wanted to hold it for some ludicrous reason he couldn’t seem to piece together at the moment. Its’ appearance harshly contradicted its’ fluid and soft demeanor; with sharp red thorns jutting out from its black speckled blocky white abdomen. 

Now just an inch away from his hand, the type of spider Donovan was reaching out for was obvious. It was a-

“Whatchya doin’?” a young man’s voice interjected with an innocently curious tone.

Donovan jumped out of his skin at the sudden surprise, yanking his hand from under the spider to grip at his chest as if he were firmly preventing it from escaping. He snapped his head towards the origin of the voice, only to find a set of smiling hazel eyes staring right back at him, and upside down eyes at that.

The joker’s ethnicity was primarily latin, with a little bit of middle eastern mixed in somewhere. He was wearing battle armor that was more fit for desert conditions, complete with sand colored baggy pants that tucked into a pair of shin length brown shoes, close fitting elbow length sand colored shirt that had an extremely baggy collar, to be used as a hood and or mouth guard, loose fitting brown vest, and a lightweight dark cape, bound at the back of his hips with an offset leather belt, that was bordered in a thicker shimmering golden fabric. 

He was hanging from a low bearing branch by his knees, yet the only thing that signaled he was defying gravity was his thick wavy brown hair that pointed down at the earth in unison, exposing his angular features and the extent of his dark goatee.

“Marcus,” Donovan sighed, relief overtaking his body, “You nearly gave me a heart attack!”

“But I didn’t.” Marcus refuted with a crooked smirk. Donovan shot his peer a pair of sideways daggers that were deflected by an oblivious smile.

He made a motion to spit out an angry jeer at his borderline friend, but before he could produce a sound the speedy carrier countered with a pre-emptive strike.

“Thinmint?” Marcus offered, sticking his hand out and shoving a dark chocolate covered disk in Donovan’s face. Donovan promptly recoiled at the offer and turned his attention back towards the spider that was now hovering just above his knees on its' silken bungee cord. Though he wasn’t really all that mad, his lack of an answer and stoic expression was answer enough to Marcus, who simply shrugged his shoulders and shoved the cookie into his own mouth, along with the three others he had clutched into his chest with his other hand.

Suddenly losing the urge to hold the spider directly, Donovan’s pupils switched to a vibrant cyan blue as he materialized a softball sized forcefield around the spider, breaking the silk line it was suspended on as it stumbled around on the inside of the blue tinted ball of energy. Holding the ball, he leaned into the sphere to get a better look at the eight-legged prize inside, ignoring the loud shuffling going on next to him and the leaves that fell out of the air like nature’s confetti.

“Seriously though,” Marcus reinitiated with a mouthful of thinmint mush, taking a seat next to Donovan while he brushed leaves off of his shoulders, “What is that?”

Rolling his eyes at the nosey intruder, Donovan leaned back to his normal sitting position as he spoke, keeping his sights set on the ball that was brought up to his face to avoid visual contact with his bench neighbor.

“Judging by the abdomen’s shape and coloration,” he muttered, rotating the orb without any physical indication, “and the unmistakable web pattern, i’d say that this little guy is definitely classified as Gasteracantha-cancriformis.”

Marcus’ expression went from one of interest to one of teasing disbelief, shifting his view from the small spider to the nerd he was sitting next to, “ English please?”

“More commonly known as the Spiny Orb Weaver.” Donovan restated with complete unamusement soaking his every word. Was binomial nomenclature really that hard to understand?

He’d actually rather not receive the answer to that question the more he thought about it. 

“O-kaaay,” Marcus said, pushing the glowing sphere back into Donovan’s lap with one hand, “So why are you playing with creepy crawlies when you should be getting ready for finals?” 

Donovan sighed as he spoke, “Because stress isn’t healthy for humans aaaand ‘playing with creepy crawlies’ keeps me from over stressing.” Just barely able to get his forcefield back from under Marcus’ hand, Donovan broke his half annoyed half engaged staring contest to get back to his very important spider ball.

“Then why don’t you just play an angsty song on your v-” Marcus began.

“If you call my viola a violin again, I will use a branding iron to burn the differences onto the insides of your eyelids so that you’ll never forget again.” Donovan stated like it was normal conversation. Marcus promptly bit his tongue to avoid a potentially very painful mistake. 

Threat successful.

 

“F-fine,” Marcus sputtered, “but even still, you can’t distance yourself from the things that stress you out and think that it won’t affect you anymore when you know that it's only going to come back later.” 

Donovan let out an exasperated grunt, sending the blue ball of energy up to the nearest branch and released the spider by dispersing the field around it. The spider scrambled up the tree after being freed from its energized prison. 

His eyes returned to their natural brown hue as he settled with a partially reluctant conversation with Marcus. Damn he was persistent. Not that he minded. Donovan was often considered a nice person, but Marcus was always determined to help, even though no one could trump Trinity in the niceness factor. That girl was seriously the queen of generosity-land and the citizens were all under her graceful rule that crushed every single competitor before they even reached the kingdom walls.

“Well then, what do you suggest?” Donovan asked expectantly. 

“Just,” Marcus stalled, looking for the right words, “Don’t worry about what you can’t control if it's only gonna make you feel worse. You’re just gonna distance yourself from the people that care about you and end up feeling alone.”

He stood up from his spot, still adding to his friendly advice, “And people don’t do so well alone. We are social creatures after all.” Marcus teased, nudging Donovan on his shoulder.

Donovan was drawing a blank. The words rang with a certain importance to them that Donovan hadn’t really planned for. He wasn’t too sure why that fact hadn’t already crossed his mind before. Ever since he could remember, he always had someone by his side when he was going through something drastic. His dad was always there through high school, his friends were there over his senior summer break when he applied for the elite program, and even Marcus was there on his first day of freshmen year when he needed help getting used to the city and the campus. Maybe his solo routine wasn’t the best way to go about this excess stress thing. 

He found himself being brought out of his own mind when Marcus nudged his shoulder. 

He was staring at the space where Marcus was sitting not long ago, blinking rapidly and yanking his gaze back to the towering carrier who was walking away from him, leaving him alone on the bench. 

What a hypocrite.

 

“Where’re you going?” Donovan said a little more needily than he would’ve liked. Massive self-confidence crusher.

“I’m in round one too.” Marcus answered as he stopped in his tracks, turning to face Donovan. 

“We’ve only got-”

“TEN MINUTES TO ROUND 1 EXAMS. TEN MINUTES.” The p.a. system announced, finishing Marcus’ explanation for him. Once the information registered, Donovan stood up with another one of his trademarked disapproving sighs. Arms crossed and head bobbing about freely, Donovan strode past the slightly taller student and onto the solid black floor that encircled the island of natural greenery. 

“Good luck.” He called out to Marcus, looking back to meet his light brown eyes once again. He gave his friend a smirk in return for the huge smile Marcus was wearing.

“You too.” Marcus called out as he jumped onto the dark floors with his usual amount of excessive energy. He trotted across the now nearly empty floor towards the first tall archway to the left of the large monitor on the far back wall of the circular room, cracking his neck and swinging his arms with a hop in his step as he dipped into the dark hallway to his assigned testing block. 

Donovan’s gaze never shifted for a moment from Marcus. He chuckled to himself at the energetic display. The man had always made Donovan’s upbeat personality look like a joke when he showed up, which, even though it made Donovan a bit defensive -which wasn't saying much for the defense carrier-, usually put a smile on his face. And more times than he could care to count, it proved Donovan wrong, on several occasions, that he could use that energy to keep moving forward in the bleakest of times. 

Taking a quick glance at the screen, Donovan headed into the middle arch on the right side of the open room, where his testing block was waiting for him. Boots clicking against the clean floor as he walked, he suddenly realized that he wasn’t worried about the final exam that he was about to jump head first into. All the stress, was almost nonexistent as he recalled the short talk not moments ago with Marcus. Sure that Peyton and Ruth had already made their own way to their assigned testing blocks, something about his new burst of confidence told him that everyone, even the hyperactive desert warrior spazz, was going to do just fine.

 

 

...

 

 

Ruth was busy wearing away the floor boards in her waiting room.  
So busy in fact, that the sudden openning of the sparring block doors made her hit the ceiling. 

"You may now begin your exam: Ruth Wolfe." She heard and automated message relay as she calmed her body down from the initial shock. Turning to face the small room that was now open to her access. Regainning her balance, Ruth timidly stepped towards the small room. Peering inside, Ruth was very glad that she didn't have claustrophobia. 

Although she was pretty sure she could make out the faintest scream from the hallways behind her, a telltale sign that a not so lucky Donovan had seen his holding area just as she did.

The confined space was no more than three feet across in width and length, with only a few feet of clearence between her head and the roof of the room. There was an identical closed door that made up the majority of the opposite wall. Slipping into the tight space, Ruth took repeatedly shakey deep breaths. The doors clanked shut behind her as she pulled herself into the room completly, making her jump once again, trapping her in darkness. 

She was about to lose her cool when a bright green light cut through the thick void of blackness like a knife through butter. And there it was, a large pulsating green projection glowing on the door in front of her labeled, 'BEGIN.'

'This was it' she thought. 'The point of no return'.

But she wasn't about to back down now.

She was done with worrying about this. About what this test was going to be like. About how hard it was going to be. It was time that she put all the worry behind her and faced this head on. She was Ruth freaking Wolfe for crying out loud! An elite combat carrier. There was no way that she couldn't do this.

Ruth puffed up her chest with strength. She used her newfound pride to move forward, pressing the button with a bit more force than nessacary, as if to say 'I'm not scared of you anymore punk!'

It let out a dull bing in confirmation of her acceptance of her ultimate challenge, and left the room to filled with darkness so fast she almost thought the computer was acting vendictive for her being so aggressive.

Ruth froze in the lightless room.

 

Okay, so maybe she was reasonably scared...

 

 

....punk....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Exciting right!? Slightly funny cliffhanger for the win! If you're itching for a fight, don't worry. They're not all getting ready for finals just to take a nap ^^! I plan on having the finals in their own separate mini chapters in order to (hopefully) produce them faster than a normal chapter, so that way there will be plenty of fight scenes in each new addition. The story is also posted on Deviant Art, so check it out there for some cool concept art (to be posted at a later date). As always, I greatly appreciate comments, so feel free to fill up the comment box below. I hope you're enjoying the story so far, if not, just stay tuned for the next addition to the Soul Shades series, you just may be surprised with what you find ;D. Till next time peeps of the interwebz!


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